


On a Kihei Afternoon

by CosmicPeppermintLatte



Series: Hawaiian Mermaid Tales [2]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: !mermaid!Jeean, Hawaii, Hawaiian!Marco, M/M, chubby!marco
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-05
Updated: 2019-07-05
Packaged: 2020-06-15 21:46:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19628839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CosmicPeppermintLatte/pseuds/CosmicPeppermintLatte
Summary: After convincing himself that meeting Jean wasn't just a good dream, Marco is met with more than just the truth about myths when he discovers just how real the legends are.





	On a Kihei Afternoon

**Author's Note:**

> After many comments, I've decided to continue this story! I have one more fic planned for this au and I hope all of you are as excited as I am to finish it! I apologize about such long breaks between works, I'm trying to kick my ass back in writing gear.

More than a month had passed since Marco had met Jean. It was a rainy April, and the waters were often too murky to swim out. Big predators loved cloudy waters and as much as Marco wanted to see the mysterious merboy again, he didn’t want to risk accidentally meeting a shark.

The past two days had been rather clear however, and Marco was excited to get back in the water. It was around 4’o’clock when he set out, and the sun wouldn’t be sinking for another two hours. The beach would still be dusted with families and surfers, but Marco couldn’t wait to stretch out his arms and feel the familiar chill of the water again.

As soon as the beach came into view Marco smiled. He loved living so close to the water. Not only was It beautiful, but he had always loved falling asleep to the sound of lapping waves. There was a connection there that went back as far back as Marco’s ancestors. The smell and feel of the ocean was deeply rooted into Marco’s family history and he trusted that connection unconditionally.

Once his feet reach the sand, he kicks off his slippers picks them up. The sun beat down on the white sand but Marco didn’t mind, it was a familiar burn against the soles of his feet that had actually become somewhat welcome. Without much thought, Marco finds an empty stretch of sand and drops his towel and shoes and takes a moment to stretch

The water was clear and glassy today, perfect beach weather. Marco wades in the water thigh deep before submerging himself. He sits for a moment and shakes out his hair before beginning to swim out to his favorite spot. It was just past the surfers and breakers. A small stretch of flat rocks that Marco often went to sit and enjoy the world around him. And of course, that was the very same spot he had first met Jean in the weeks prior. He hoped that if he stuck around long enough that the merboy would seek him out.

He crawled atop of the rocks and laid back. The sun’s rays having warmed the entire surface. A few deep breaths and Marco was completely relaxed. The ocean around him danced over the rocks and misted him in a gentle spray. Marco truly was home in the ocean. As a young boy, Marco had learned to fish these waters with his father and his father before him, going back for several generations.

The land was their own. The Ahupua’a that Marco’s family managed was a slice of land starting high in the mountains and extending into the ocean waves. This provided the family with everything they needed from the land: Trees to build canoes, patches of land to farm, and Marco’s favorite part, waters to fish.

A strange slapping sound pulls Marco out of his trance. He sits up and looks around, but sees nothing out of the ordinary. The slapping continues and he scoots closer to the rock’s edge and peers down.

“Jean?” Marco calls out, hoping to the heavens that that the noise was caused by the other boy. A long silence fills the air then. Nothing but the sound of lapping waves and the sea breeze.

Suddenly, a head with sandy blond hair pops out of the surf and glances up to the top of the rocks.

“Jean! You came back!” Marco practically vibrates with excitement as he smiles down at the other boy.

Jean blinks and offers Marco a small wave.

“You haven’t come by for a while.” Jean states flatly.

Marco crawls to the edge of the rock and faces Jean. His back was toward the beach, so there was no way any of the other beach goers would be able to get a glimpse of the merboy.

“I know! The rain has been pretty nasty. The sharks like that kind of weather.”

Jean seems to consider the question and gives an approving nod.

“I thought you weren’t going to come back.” Jean mumbles, trying hard not to sound too invested.

“Are you kidding?” Marco barks. “I came back as quickly as I could! I can’t believe you’re really here. I was so excited to see you again.

Jean blinks. “Really?”

“Yeah! I had to convince myself that I didn’t just dream you up. I knew you were real!”

Jean stares at him in disdain and narrows his eyes with a pout. “Of course I’m real. We had a whole conversation. And as I told you, I’ve been waiting for you to come back.”

Marco blushes a little and looks down. “I’m really sorry Jean. I really had just convinced myself that I had a really great dream. I really thought that mermaids were a myth.”

“Merman!” Jean huffs. “I’m a guy. And I am absolutely 100% real. Here, I’ll prove it.” Jean reaches up and pinches him before taking Marco’s hands and letting them touch the scales on his wrists.

Marco’s eyes widen as his fingers brush the soft feeling of the scales. “Whoa…that’s so cool…” He says wistfully.

Jean just rolls his eyes and pulls his hand back away. “You humans are much too easily amused. You’re just like a kid, Marco.”

The other boy giggles again. “So I’ve heard. I’ve got the curiosity of a three-year-old.” Marco shrugs and dips his feet back into the water.

The both of them sit in an awkward silence before Marco breaks it again.

“So, have you lived here your whole life?” Marco askes tilting his head.

“No, I moved here like two years ago.”

“Moved?”

“I’m from California.”

“Califor--seriously?”

Jean wrinkles his nose. “Is that hard to believe?”

“Ah, no, I mean— Do you guys travel often?”

“Not more than anyone else I suppose. Are you from here?”

Marco shifts his position on the rocks so he’s sitting cross-legged. “Yeah, I’ve lived here my whole life.”

“That must be nice. I moved here for the weather. I don’t like the cold and a lot of people said this place was nice. “

“Well, there’s no better place to be.” A content grin spreads across his face.

Jean is lightly taken aback by Marco’s smile. He felt a strange connection to the other boy that he couldn’t quite explain. Before he has a chance to question it, Marco is leaning forward on his knees leaving their noses just inches from each other.

“Where do you live exactly?” The tan boy asks, a bright curiosity glimmering in his eyes.

Jean squirms under his gaze. He never really talked to a human before Marco and wasn’t expecting him to be quite so curious. It wasn’t forbidden to talk to humans. Many of their kind would show themselves to sailors, fisherman, even human children. As far as he knows however, he’s never seen any merfolk take a human back to their lair.

“You… wanna see it?” Jean asks carefully, unsure if he really wanted to hear the answer.

“Um, yes? Of course!”

Jean squints, not sure if he wanted to take back his words.

“Okay then…” Jean says with just a hint of hesitation. He lets go of the rock he’s on and drops back into the water. Marco watches with wide eyes as he sees Jean’s glittering green and blue tail for the first time.

“You’re an Uhu!” Marco shouts excitedly.

Jean raises an eyebrow. “Excuse me?”

“You’re an Uhu, a Parrotfish!”

“Is that what you call us?”

“No wonder you wanted to move here. It’s like paradise for you guys.”

Jean shrugs. “I don’t know if I’d go that far. Humans are kind of ruining the ocean for us.”

Marco frowns and sighs sadly. “Yeah, we are, aren’t we?”

Seeing Marco’s face that sad stung him a little.

“Well, not specifically you. You seem to care a lot for the ocean, more so than the other humans.

A heavy silence hung over them until Jean breaks it by splashing water into Marco’s face.

“Come on, before it gets too dark for you to see.”

Marco gives a quick nod before diving into the water. Marco tries to follow Jean as fast as he could, but even being the strong swimmer that he was, he was just no match for Jean. Jean has to stop several times to let Marco catch up, until out of the blue. A sea turtle begins swimming in circles around Marco coming to a stop just beneath him. Marco gives Jean a puzzled look and the merboy shrugs his shoulders, not knowing what to think of it either. The turtle inches closer until it’s shell is brushing Marco’s belly. Gently, he reaches out and touches its shell. It had a slimy feel to it, but it was a beautiful brown and green color. The turtle then nudges hits nose up, grazing Marco’s body with its shell again. This time, Marco reached out with both of his hands gripping the shell lightly. The turtle speeds off after that, pulling Marco quickly through the water, faster than he could ever dream of going by himself.

Jean doesn’t question it, he begins swimming again, letting the turtle drive Marco. Everything went well until Jean suddenly stops and looks back. Marco raises his head for a breath of air and dunks his head back in the water, squinting and cursing himself for not bringing a pair of goggles. Before them was a patch of Jellyfish. Marco opens his mouth in a gasp.

“ _Let me see if I can part them._ ” Comes Jean’s voice ringing in his ears.

Marco opens his mouth again, trying to say the word _what._

_“You can talk telepathically!?”_ Marco screams in his head.

Jean doesn’t answer him. He goes to the edge of the group and starts fanning his tail with all his might. The jellyfish started to part for them. Jean kept fanning until he had made a clear path. Thee sea turtle plows through the field of Jellies and joins Jean on the other side.

_“We’re almost there.”_ Jean’s voice again. Marco doesn’t respond this time, simply giving a small nod. The path got a little harder to navigate. There was a surplus of rocks and coral reef to swim through. Marco was surprised at how shallow the water was still. He notices that they’re not too far from the beach. Just off to the side where humans weren’t very likely to go due to the rocky coast. Jean comes to a stop at the mouth of a watery cave. Marco lets go of his companion and swims to it.

The sight left Marco breathless. The sun shone through cracks in the celling bouncing off several different colored gems placed throughout the cave. It wasn’t especially deep. Marco swims in and stands up a few paces in. The deeper he went the shallower it got, until he’s standing in waist deep water. He peered further in and even noticed a stretch of dry sand in the back of the cave.

“This is beautiful Jean.”

Jean scratches his cheek and swims around Marco nervously. “It’s home. I haven’t managed to fill it really, but, it’s mine.”

Marco wades to one side and picks up one of the gems. “Is this all sea glass?”

“Sea glass? I don’t know. I find them sometimes. They’re all over. They’re pretty, so I keep them.”

“I have some too, I can bring it to you.” Marco says a little breathlessly. “It’s sad, all these used to be bottles that got carelessly dropped into the ocean. But over time, they breakdown and you get sea glass.’

“I had a lot more back in Cali. It was a little more common there.”

Marco smiles and puts the piece back down. “I hope that means we’re doing a little better on our part of keeping the ocean clean.

“Yeah, it probably does mean that…” Jean pauses and turns back to the sea turtle still lingering at the mouth of the cave. “So… who is this? She says she’s family?”

Marco spins around and does a double take. “She, wait. She says she’s what?”

“Your family?”

“My family?” Marco stands dumbfounded for several seconds before an idea makes its way into his head. “OH! My family’s aumakua is a sea turtle! Maybe she /is/ family? What’s her name?”

“Lani?”

“Huh,” Marco makes his way back to her and reaches out his hand. “Thank you, for helping me get here.” The turtle seems to acknowledge him and bumps her head into his hand. “So wait,”

Marco continues. “You can talk, like, with your mind? You can understand her?”

“Yeah?” Jean says rather flatly. “We can all understand each other. I didn’t know if you could hear me. I can’t hear your thoughts like I can hear hers.”

“That’s…. so unbelievably cool!” Marco sputters tossing his hands into his hair.

“You sure are easily amused.” Jean chides.

“No! You don’t get it; this is so cool! You’re here, you’re real! Lani is like, a spirit animal and she’s real. I can’t believe this is happening.”

“What’s a spirit animal?”

“It’s like, a family guardian I guess?” Marco turns back to Lani. “Are you the same turtle that like’s the North shore?” The turtle looks at him with glossy eyes.

“She says maybe.”

“Oh man. This is so crazy.” Marco lays back and floats on the top of the water still trying to take everything in. “I hope this means I can keep seeing you.” He says suddenly, sitting up again.

“Yeah? I mean, if you want” Jean murmurs sinking his body back into the water.

Marco can’t help but chuckle at him. “I think you don’t want to admit it, but you’re curious about me too.”

“Of course I’m curious.” Jean shoots back. “I’ve never talked to a human before.”

Marco smiles brightly at him. “Okay, next time, I’ll bring you some of my sea glass, and we’ll talk more about me.”

Jean crosses his arms and nods. “Okay…”

Marco sighs and turns back to the mouth of the cave. “I should probably get back before I can’t see anything. Those rocks looked mean.”

“Lani’ll help you”

Marco turns back to the turtle and reaches out a hand to rub her shell. “Thank you, Lani.”

Before he takes off, he turns back to Jean one last time. “I’ll see you again then?”

“I’ll see you, maybe you’ll see me.” Jean dives under the water then and swims out of the cave. Marco grabs onto Lani’s shell and lets her take him away.

He could have sworn he’d seen a blush on Jean’s cheeks before he left. He’d ask about it later.

**Author's Note:**

> As always, thank you for the support. If you like my works, please consider buying me a [coffee](https://ko-fi.com/cosmicpeppermintlatte)
> 
> I have a [twitter](https://twitter.com/yasafumi) and a [tumblr](https://cosmic-peppermint-latte.tumblr.com/)! Thank you for reading!


End file.
